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Biological Psychology Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Biological Psychology

Social Problems, Biomedical Answers? How Causes Of Social Problems Affect Choice Of Solutions, Bianca C. Dreyer Jan 2016

Social Problems, Biomedical Answers? How Causes Of Social Problems Affect Choice Of Solutions, Bianca C. Dreyer

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

With rapid advances in behavioural genetics, scientists are identifying an increasing array of genetic influences on human behaviour. Public misconceptions about the function of genes often lead to the oversimplification of the role of genes in behaviour (Dar-Nimrod & Heine, 2011). To date, no study has systematically investigated whether simply learning about genetic causes of behaviour affects people’s preferred solutions to problematic behaviours. The present research program includes three studies that were designed to examine the psychological effects of exposure to genetic etiology for problematic behaviour, in particular aggression, and investigated how this information influences endorsement of solutions, rating of …


Age-Related Changes In Hippocampal Arc Expression Following Minimal Behavioural Induction, Irina V. Odintsova Jan 2016

Age-Related Changes In Hippocampal Arc Expression Following Minimal Behavioural Induction, Irina V. Odintsova

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Normal ageing is associated with significant changes in cognitive function, including the decline of some forms of memory. The hippocampal formation is critical to learning and memory function, and plasticity in this region declines with age. Additionally, age-related differences in plasticity are greatest at lower levels of stimulation, thus peri-threshold plasticity may be of the greatest relevance for age-related changes in cognition. Moreover, the hippocampus is prone to changes in the expression of gene products that mediate plasticity with age. The current thesis attempts to link these observations by measuring hippocampal expression of Arc, an immediate-early gene that is critical …